The Prequel
by InnerGlow
Summary: In which we see a young Ratchet becoming who he is in the first game. Alternative Title; Ratchet Growing Up


I adore these games. They mean so much to me. I grew up with them and have so many great memories with them and I can't imagine not knowing them. So when I finally actually thought of going and searching for RaC fanfics I was so excited to see what was out there. It was a great series, so I should find some great fanfics, right? I was surprised to find that the games weren't actually all that well known. Or at least as popular as I thought they should be. And so there weren't that many great fics to find. Needless to say, I was a bit sad. And a lot of times when I do find good fics, they're discontinued. So, I'm making you a promise here and now; I never abandon a fic. I've posted plenty of fics in the past and then lost my drive to write them for a while, but I'll never truly abandon them. No matter how long it takes me to get back to it, I'll always get back to it. It's just that sometimes, it's only after I've posted a fic that I realize how childish they were and then decide that I need to go back and do them better. But I always push that to someday. But this one, I feel will be different. Because this is a series where I turn the games into stories on here for people to read, no matter if they're long time fans or new and this is where they're first learning the games, this should, if I write it well, be a good read for both audiences. Because I don't want this great game series to die out. And ever since I read What Makes a Hero by Selphie Kinneas 175 on FF I've loved novelizations. Now I always try and find them to see if anyone else has done something spectacular like she has. And some actually have. But for most fandoms, there is nothing there. And I got to thinking about it with this one. I thought it'd be great if someone made fics to introduce new people to this wonderful series of games and still be entertaining for longtime fans like myself, when it struck me. Instead of waiting for someone to do it when it probably wasn't going to happen, why didn't I do it? So I decided to get off my lazy butt and start writing this. Now, I know this isn't the game yet, but I wanted to write this to try and explain something for how he is the way he is in the beginning of the game and to get into his mindset at that time. And I haven't found any other fics that cover that time period, unless they're AUs, so I thought this would be entertaining for people to read. So, i hope you enjoy, and if my writing sucks, I'm sorry, but I am trying to improve and one of the only ways to improve is to actually write, so I'll hopefully improve as this series goes. Hope you enjoy. (Cross-posted on AO3)

Also, something I'd like to ask. What kind of hands do you think Ratchet should have? Because it'll also affect the way he acts. There are some who are fans of the cat hands and some who are fans of the human hands. I've never really cared one way or the other, so I thought I'd just go with what the majority wants. Here's a poll where you can vote. /9mzz8h (it's a poal me thing, so just put that after that.)

Song listened to while writing this: Anything to Get to You (put this after youtube url) watch?v=0ZOZiX_C6BY (From Sherwood show. It was very cheesy and I could only watch 2 episodes before I had to stop, but the soundtrack was amazing so I still like listening to the music.)

(A little side note for those of you interested in What Makes a Hero. Here's the link. (put this after normal fanfiction url.) s/6325702/1/What-Makes-a-Hero It's a Zelda: Twilight Princess fic about the games but making them a bit more realistic, which is what I'm hoping to achieve here, with this series. But I loved that game before and this fic made me love it even more. It really blows your socks off so if you're a fan of Zelda I think you'll enjoy this.)

* * *

It was a dry day. The wind howled. The sun shone. Everything was hot. Something shone in the shadow of a rock. That shouldn't be there. He'd passed this way so many times on his patrols that he would probably notice if there was even a chip taken from one of the pebbles in the area. And this, was certainly bigger than that. As he got closer, the shiny thing turned into an escape pod. All the way out here? What was it even doing here? He hadn't heard of any recent battles nearby. As he approached, he thought he heard a noise. It almost sounded like… crying? Racing over, he popped open the door, releasing more crying sounds (as that was definitely what it was), and looked in to see nothing but a little bundle of blankets. Curious and concerned, he got close and looked over to see that it was a tiny furry baby. He had no idea what species it was, but that didn't matter. It looked like his parents had sent him off to keep him safe, since it was alone in the pod, and it seemed like it needed care, so he would need to get it that care. Grabbing the baby, he quickly headed towards town. Sanlf would take care of the little one, he was sure.

* * *

"You're it!"

A hand touched his shoulder and shoved, making him fall flat on his face. There was laughter and the sound of feet scrambling away. He sat up and huffed. On one hand, they were including him in the game and he liked playing tag. But on the other hand, one of _them_ had pushed him and _they_ were the same ones laughing. Yet as he looked up and saw Asoih smiling at him and ready to run, he sighed and smiled, deciding to just go with it. Running after them, he quickly tagged someone and ran to the rock. Nuif was already up there and, of course, making sure that no one else could join him in relative saftey even though there was definitely enough space up there. Glancing over at the kids that were screaming, he noted that they were on the other side of the play area. That meant that he had at least a little bit of time before they came over and he had the potential to be it again. Scrambling up the rock, he nearly fell off when Nuif's foot tried to come into contact with him. Instead, he grabbed the foot and nearly pulled the bully off too.

"Ratchet!" he shrieked, "Get off!"

A grin, followed by an, "Alright."

He let go of Nuif's foot and climbed up the rest of the rock, sitting comfortably and proudly at the top. The bully growled and climbed up next to him, only to proceed to try and push him off. Instead, Ratchet leaned out of the way and decided that he'd had enough, so he pushed back, though his push didn't miss. And it sent the other sliding right off the rock with a scream and a curse sent his way. Laughing as Nuif slid down, he laughed even harder when someone came up behind him and tagged him just as he hit the ground. The fury on Nuif's face was priceless.

"_Ratchet!_" he screamed, then stormed up the rock as fast as he could go. Grinning, Ratchet slid down just as the other reached the top and he took off as fast as he could go. He wasn't letting Nuif catch him if he could help it. There were more screams from the bully but he didn't hear them as he focused on just getting away. Weaving between the other kids, he looks back and snickers at what he sees. Nuif had stumbled over one of the other kid's tail and fallen. Oh, this was so good. And then the fun was ruined when he suddenly felt hands holding tight to his arms. His head whipped around to see some of the other bullies. They held him fast as Nuif and a few others came up to him, the former brushing himself off and looking disgruntled. A smirk crept onto his face. At least he'd gotten back at one of them.

"What's that smile for, fur ball? You think something's funny?" one of the other bullies, Miod, asked. A snort, as he replied, "Yeah, all you guys thinking you can take me on even with me restrained."

Of course, they laugh at him. They always do. But he's tired of just sitting there and doing nothing once they catch him like this. This time, he's going all out. As they approach him and get close, his foot flies forwards and gets them right in the nose. The others shout and come rushing forwards. He ducks under a punch then brings his head back up, effectively headbutting their elbow. They cried out in pain and the ones beside him loosen their grips a bit as they yell in concern. He takes this opportunity to yank the arm being held by the smaller, weaker one towards him and thus pulls the bully within range of a bite. He also screams and lets go, giving Ratchet the chance to jump out of the way of another punch and onto the last one holding him. He headbutts this one in the face, causing him to cry out in pain and let go, and he's now free. Turning to the other bullies, he gets in one good punch before he hears an adult voice calling, "Ratchet!"

They all stop and look towards the orphanage. It's Sanlf. And she doesn't look happy whatsoever. Ratchet sighs. Sometimes he thinks they named him after their least favorite thing, instead of after how his race was known for being handy with tools. After all, they love to yell his name angrily. When he meets her eyes, she looks stern and points to her feet. He casts one last glare back at the bullies, which is returned by them all, before he obediently heads over and looks at the ground sheepishly. He can practically feel her gaze on him as she says, "Well, I can see you know what you've done wrong. I've told you no fighting before and yet you can't seem to help yourself. I bet your species is also vicious, if you're anything to go by. Now get going. You have some chores to do as punishment."

Of course she had to make a jab at lombaxes like that. He opened his mouth to protest when she interjected, "You know which one."

And that was the end of it. Sulkily going in to do as he was told, he looked back real quick as he heard laughter. He turned to see the bullies laughing, though Sanlf was glaring at them next, so maybe they wouldn't go unpunished this time. Getting a small smile at that thought, he heads inside to do chores. _Ugh._

* * *

And there you have it. The first chapter. Yay! I know it's kinda short but I've got set things I want to explore in each chapter so it's only going to cover those things, which means I have no idea how long each chapter is going to be. Besides, this is just the start. I got a lot more planned. So, I'll see you guys soon with the next chapter. Glow bright!


End file.
